mint jewels

10 weeks tomorrow!

2011-02-19T22:49:00.000-05:00

So what happened to me in the land of blogworld, well I made a baby... I had just begun blogging and stopped when I got pregnant(yay!!)
So, our son Winter was born December 12th and I love being a mom and I miss sleeping.
Although W mostly sleeps(I'm soooo lucky), some exciting things have been happening.
This week he began cooing when I sang familiar songs to him and sometimes it seems like he's trying to sing along.
Yesterday was a really big day in our world of ECing(elimination communication). W woke up from a nap with a dry diaper and then oned and twoed in the potty!!! Crazy right? I've sort of created my own method of EC(he still wears diapers) and never in my wildest dreams would I have believed it would work so well.

He may have actually looked at the pictures in his storybook and he managed to swing and hit a hanging toy - yesterday was a big day of firsts. They tired him out so much that we were able to grocery shop today without any fussing.
Well, I see mint jewels turning into a bit of a baby blog, filled with my loves and inspirations. xoxo

Basket for your bike?

2010-04-12T01:59:00.001-04:00

The accessories have arrived at riders and I have my eye on this basket. After being inspired by the Jane Birkin post and other basket posts at fieldguided, I knew a basket was the perfect shopping bag. This one will be ready for groceries wherever I ride.

{source}

Back in the day...

2010-04-06T11:08:00.002-04:00

When I saw this posted over at The Foxy Robot, I was flooded with rad fluorescent memories.

Did you listen to New Kids on the Block? I remember the year that every ride at the Ex was blasting Hanging Tough, there was an important decision to be made at this moment, you either loved them or hated them and there was no turning back. I chose to hate them(seemed like the cooler choice at the time), I then had to hide the fact that I liked Step by Step.

Babysitters Club or Sweet Valley High books? Babysitters Club and then Sweet Valley High(I've always loved reading) I remember another series of Thriller Sweet Valley High books, I loved those scary ones.

Kids Incorporated or Mickey Mouse Club? didn't get these in Canada when I was growing up, although I remember meeting some kids from Mickey Mouse Club one year when I visited Florida

Did you want Dylan to end up with Brenda or Kelly? Kelly; Brenda was a whiner

Who would you rather have for a next door neighbor: Kimmy Gibler or Urkel? Kimmy!

Step by Step or Full House? Full House

Did you watch Double Dare? not in Canada

Who was your favorite character on Saved by the Bell? hmmmm... not sure

Who was hotter: Zack or Slater? Zack, couldn't get into Slater's curls

Care Bears or Smurfs? Smurfs, although I really enjoyed the Care Bear Stare

Rainbow Brite or Strawberry Shortcake? Strawberry Shortcake, they smelled so yummy!

Did you wear jelly shoes? yes

Did you own a Trapper Keeper? a what?

Did you ever end a sentence with the word "Psych"? yep

What's your favorite song by Prince? Alphabet St. (I remember dancing to this in Jazz class)

What lunchbox did you carry to school? Smurfs

Friendship pins or friendship bracelets? first the pins and then I really got into making the bracelets(I even sold them for $1 each)

Madonna or Cyndi Lauper? Cyndi Lauper was the first record(yes vinyl) I bought with my own money. Right after this we got a tape player. Once Cyndi dissappeared I fell for Madonna and still love her.

Do you know what happened to Baby Jessica? rescued?

Corey Haim or Corey Feldman? neither

Where were you when the Challenger exploded? I was home sick from school and watched it too many times.

Who was your favorite Facts of Life character? Jo

Pretty in Pink or Sixteen Candles? Sixteen Candles

Barbie or Jem? Jem is truly outrageous!

Did you watch After school Specials? rarely, but liked them when I saw them

Flashdance or Footloose? Footloose!! taped on VHS and watched and watched and watched

Tiffany or Debbie Gibson? Tiffany--we used to play it(and the Beastie Boys) on the classroom tape player during lunchtime

Can you name a member of the Brat Pack? Emilio Estevez?

Esprit or Forenza? Esprit

What was your favorite fashion fad? goomie bracelets

What was your favorite tv show? The Cosby Show

What was your favorite cartoon? The Smurfs and Spiderman

Kirk Reinert

2010-04-05T16:29:00.000-04:00

I received this beautiful postcard from Germany. This beautiful painting is the creation of American artist Kirk Reinert. I adore faeries and have fallen in love with his artwork. My favourite is the painting below, it looks so much like a photograph, love it!!! According to his website he was a book cover artist for many fantasy, horror and science fiction novels. He now paints these fine art pieces. I think they're magical.

{Feathered Friends}

{Night Harvest}

{Night Light}

Worldwide Pincushion Swap

2010-04-02T21:01:00.000-04:00

So way too long after the fact(there was still snow on the ground), I'm posting about Leigh-Ann's Worldwide Pincushion Swap. The smurf house above is the pincushion I made using this tutorial. I'm so happy I made something, it was so fun and I learned some new embroidery stitches. You can't see the windows in my pic, but I gave them lace curtains. I also decided to get out my jewelry supplies and make some earrings for my new blog friend/swap partner Sasha from The Foxy Robot. It was so great getting to know Sasha and emailing back and forth. I love her new blog and will be borrowing some ideas soon(some retrofabulousness).

Sasha sent me this beautiful quilted pincushion. I love it!!! I need to set up my studio to give this cushion a beautiful home. Hopefully I'll be back sooner than later....

Today I Saw

2010-03-05T20:30:00.000-05:00

This week, I received this lovely postcard from Jill from Today I Saw. I love her blog, she draws watch she sees each day and then sends the postcard off to a lucky person somewhere in the world. So fun, check out her blog.

Yes it's true

2010-03-03T21:19:00.001-05:00

Valentine(my hubby) and Coco have opened riders, their Bike shop/Cafe/Art Gallery. I'm so excited! They're having their first art opening on Saturday. Come one, come all, it's going to be fun! Check out their blog.

Veggie delight

2010-02-21T16:50:00.003-05:00

Even though I know, I don't always do. I know I feel amazing when I only eat veggies, but I keep eating meat. Lately I don't feel like eating meat, so I decided to prepare a super veggie meal. We had my favourite salad, eggplant parmesan and some lychee nuts for dessert.
My favourite salad and dressing are from Natalia Rose's The Raw Food Detox Diet, as I've said before I love this book!! Even though I'm not following the book as I hope to soon, I am trying to incorporate many raw foods and meals. Eating this way always give me a clean energy, as opposed to the jittery energy I get from coffee. Here are the recipes:

Ambrosia Salad(slightly modified, I leave out the beet because it turns the salad pink and it looks weird)

Makes 4 to 6 servings (we ate almost the whole thing with 2 people, but we like to eat alot)

1 bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 large carrot, sliced into matchstick pieces
1 zucchini, sliced into matchstick pieces
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup apples, sliced into matchstick pieces
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
1/2 jalapeno diced
1/2 cup dried unsulfured cranberries
1/2 cup sliced sunchokes(Jerusalem artichokes) into matchstick pieces (I didn't have any of these this time and it was still delicious, but they definitely add a little something if you have them and if you've never tried them - you have to, they're so yummy and I also love them sliced and roasted)
1/4 cup packed fresh mint
1/2 cup packed fresh basil
1/2 bunch packed fresh cilantro

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Top with:

Liquid Gold Elixir dressing

Makes 4 cups (I made 1/3 of this recipe since I only had a little ginger left and it was enough for the salad and I have dressing left for this week)

2 cups fresh lemon juice
3 whole cloves garlic
3 tablespoons minced ginger
3 tablespoons Nama Shoyu soy sauce (this is raw(unpasteurized) soy sauce, I'm sure you could use regular, this soy sauce is delicious though, it's kind of milder like the low sodium kind)
3 heaping tablespoons raw honey (or more if desired - use it to balance out tartness of lemon juice)
1 1/2 cups cold-pressed olive oil

Place all of the ingredients except the oil in blender. Begin blending at normal speed. As the mixture is blending, slowly add the oil until it's completely blended(I added the oil at once). This recipe should last over a week in the fridge.

That's it for the salad. Now on to the eggplant parmesan.

Eggplant Parmesan

I originally saw this recipe made on The View to promote Alton Brown's book Good Eats. I don't have this book, but based on this deliciousness, I want to try more recipes. I found this fun video of the recipe, which shows how it only takes 1 minute to make. When Alton was on The View, he said that to prepare the eggplant; he peeled and sliced it and then salted the slices and laid them out on a cookie sheet for about 15 minutes - the perfect time for making the salad. The slices will sweat out the bitterness and then you just pat them dry and slice into noodles.

Time for some more Olympics! Let me know if you try any of these recipes :)
Sorry about the crappy layout, apparently blogger and my mac don't agree, it won't let me use the spacing or the font sizes that I tell it, do any of you have these problems or any solutions - maybe typepad?

Got my first postcard...

2010-02-18T20:49:00.000-05:00

My first postcard from my new adventure in Postcrossing arrived yesterday all the way from Germany. I love these traditional costumes because they remind me of the family trip to Europe I went on when I was nine. I collected dolls in traditional costumes from almost every country we visited.
So far, I've mailed postcards to England, China, Brazil, U.S.A., Thailand and Finland. The one to England reached it's destination and 3 days later, mine arrived from Germany. So fun!!!
There hasn't been much posting here lately because I'm caught up in the Olympics. The men's snowboard halfpipe last night was unreal!!! Off to watch the ladies' halfpipe...

Postcrossing

2010-02-11T23:08:00.001-05:00

After talking with my honey the other day about how it's so much easier being nerdy as an adult than it was as a kid, I found a new nerdy hobby. I loved stamps as a kid and had a small collection even though I was convinced that this was nerdy behaviour. I'm so excited to have found Postcrossing. You send postcards to people all over the world and then you get postcards from all over the world.
I went out to buy postcards and discovered that they're not everywhere. I only managed to find cheesy touristy ones. I think pictures of the city is what many people want to receive, but spare me the multicoloured early nineties font. I'm going to have to check out some museum gift shops and art shops. If anyone knows a great spot to find postcards in Toronto, please let me know.

I've found some adorable postcard sets on etsy. Wouldn't you love to receive one of these beautiful illustrations in the mail rather than a bill?

ashleyg

MichelleBrusegaard

theblackapple

I have to wait until people receive my cards and then it'll be my turn. The Postcrossing site chooses random addresses for you send to and then random people are chosen to send to you. You're not writing back and forth unless you choose to do so. So cool! I can't wait to see the postcards/stamps I get. You can request what type of cards you like and I'm hoping to be sent art from around the globe.

Colours me pretty

2010-02-04T00:39:00.002-05:00

This photo of Emma Watson caught my eye at skona hem and the search was on for the rest of this series by Norman Jean Roy which originally appeared in Teen Vogue. I love the jewel tones, the fantasy and the mix of new and old. Someday I'll get around to watching Harry Potter.

images via miss english rose by Norman Jean Roy

Liu Bolin disappears

2010-02-03T12:20:00.000-05:00

Liu Bolin paints himself to match the background -- amazing!! The patience this must take to get the photo just right... I'd love to see his process, does he paint the clothes before he puts them on?

images via artnet via pois rouge

Lost

2010-01-30T11:04:00.000-05:00

The time has finally come. The first episode of the final season of Lost airs Tuesday. My dilemma is whether to try and tivo the entire season and then watch. Lost is so much better watched in chunks then one hour once a week; you just don't get as wrapped up watching it weekly. My friend was kind enough to point out that if I don't watch weekly, I'll probably hear about the plot and might as well be watching. This works out since there's nothing else worth watching lately. I now have a weekly tv date.
Even though I'm team Sawyer and Kate, I couldn't resist posting these amazing shots photographed by Peggy Sirota(definitely worth checking out her site).

from ew via lovely little things

Half Broke Horses

2010-01-27T02:10:00.000-05:00

via

Enjoying the first Slow Readers Book Club selection so far. One of the forum's topics is favourite quotes. Jeannette Walls writing creates such vivid pictures for me. I love this quote from page 6(remember that it's slow reading) of Half Broke Horses:

When you looked out across the land, most everything you could see---the horizon, the river, the fence lines, the gullies, the scrub cedar---was spread out and flat, and the people, cattle, horses, lizards, and water all moved slowly, conserving themselves.

This could have to do with the fact that I'm dreaming of summer and all the amazing fresh veggies and fruit. So far I'm 5 green smoothies for 5 days. Yay! This is a good habit to create. Working on putting together a shopping list for my raw/healthy food detox. One thing I know for sure is that I have to make sure I stock up and have options so that there's always something to make and I don't feel hungry.

Dry shampoo

2010-01-24T23:29:00.001-05:00

I don't know why I put it off for so long. I kept hearing about dry shampoo and being new(again) to longish hair(my first mini ponytail today), I needed to do something. I've had short hair for a few years now and noticed that the longer 'do needed to be washed daily. Once you start washing hair everyday, that's it: your scalp produces oil to keep up with the daily stripping and the cycle begins. Went to Sephora last weekend and bought Oscar Blandi Dry Shampoo. I'm so excited that it works and it smells good too. My hair has way more volume and I am now looking forward to the curling iron(grow hair grow). Styling is going to be so much easier and I think I'll even try it with clean hair for the added volume. Now I just need a haircut.

So my third day of green smoothies and all is well. Experienced some stomach gurgling first night and had a few new zits yesterday(already going away today). I made super yummy veggie soup (amazing recipe from an awesome blog) for dinner with salad. I think I may be on a health kick minus last night's nachos;) Just trying for lots and lots of veggies.

Green Smoothie Revolution

2010-01-22T23:29:00.002-05:00

Yay!!! My first blog giveaway win. I participated in the Green Smoothie Challenge earlier this month hosted by Suzanne on her awesome blog Enchanted Chameleon and was lucky enough to win Green Smoothie Revolution by Victoria Boutenko.

I've learned so much from Suzanne about raw foods(her blog is a wealth of knowledge). Green smoothies are amazing for you and taste great even though they may look a little scary(you get used to them being green:).

I have dabbled in the wonders of raw food and I know that they make me feel healthy and energized. Other benefits include: I lose weight, my skin looks amazing/younger and the whites of my eyes brighten.

The hardest part is sticking to it. I am excited to have all these new recipes because if I can stick to daily green smoothies, it will be one giant step in the right direction.

This weekend I plan to pull out the The Raw Food Detox Diet by Natalia Rose. I'm going to try and start from level 5(furthest from raw), so I can gradually incorporate more raw foods into my diet. I like this book because it's not completely raw and you work towards raw breakfast and lunch with a cooked dinner. You can then choose to go all raw, but I don't think winter is the time for that to happen for me(if ever... I don't want all raw, I would like mostly raw).

I'll let you know how it goes with this new plan. But for now, using what I had in the house, which wasn't much, pictured below is today's green smoothie(spinach, half mango, frozen mixed fruit and water). If you'd like to learn how to make green smoothies, check out Suzanne's demo.

Little Doe lookbook

2010-01-20T01:41:00.002-05:00

Love, love, love the lookbook for Little Doe headpieces.

via stylelikeu

Haiti

2010-01-16T23:51:00.000-05:00

I am definitely still in shock over the devastation which has occurred in Haiti. My prayers go out to all the people of Haiti. CBC has put together a list of where to donate from Canada(including how to send text donations).

Slow Readers Book Club

2010-01-16T14:37:00.001-05:00

So I've decided to join the Slow Readers Book Club. I love the idea of no pressure to finish the book(March 4th may seem like pressure as it gets closer) and that you meet online. In a slow fashion I am waiting for the first read which I have on hold from my local library. I found out about the club from Much Love. For more info and to join our.city.lights, while you're there make sure you check out her Diana Mini giveaway.

Here I am...

2010-01-09T19:02:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year to all y'all! It's been over a month since I posted and I'm gonna make sure it's not another month till you see me here again. I've purchased a space heater which will definitely make blogging easier as I will now be able to feel my fingers.

I never got around to posting the lovely things I saw at the craft shows I went to before Christmas. I really enjoyed cityofcraft and will definitely be checking out their events in the future and hopefully participating in one. I figure you may have Christmas money to spend and these would be nice things to spend it on.

Birch bark jewelry and creations from bettula. I bought myself some earrings and my mom the hanging dove. The dove picture does not do it justice, it has a dark side and light side and looks absolutely beautiful hanging in a window. I want some doves for my home, I'm just going to have to decide how many.

Even though I was supposed to be Christmas shopping, I bought myself Ella's Botanicals Lemon Meringue Lotion. Incredible!! The yummiest lotion ever and it keeps making me think of the Strawberry Shortcake doll who smelled exactly like this(she musta been called Lemon Meringue).

via

Moving forward

2009-12-07T22:22:00.006-05:00

There are a million reasons why you shouldn't, but you'll never know unless you try.

This is obvious for many, but I feel it's a lesson I've forgotten a lot along the way. I'm trying to take more risks and try new things -- this is why I now have a blog. It's funny how when I actually put myself out there, I have so much fun.

Last week I started improv classes; so fun and funny! I'm really gonna have to think quickly while listening at the same time and be hilarious. Working on my bravery in this challenging class.

My friends and I put together a proposal for a new theatre festival. Keeping my fingers crossed that we'll get in and be able to create our French children's play.

I've been playing volleyball for a couple of months now, something which I didn't realize how much I missed. Thank you to my sister for getting me out on the court and introducing me to her lovely team!

I love the excitement when things start to fall into place: the ball is now rolling. It's a rugged ball that can conquer any bumps. Can't wait to see what comes next in this period of transition.

Pinecone pompom

2009-12-06T14:11:00.002-05:00

I finally crafted yesterday. Here's my pinecone pompom. I followed the tutorial at resurrection fern. I absolutely love this blog; it's my daily escape from the city. I can't get enough of the early morning nature photography and how well her projects blend into the forest.

I love moonrox!!!

2009-12-05T14:49:00.001-05:00

Two days left of the One of a Kind Show and I just wanted to give you a heads-up on one of my favourites. Incredibly beautiful jewelry full of charm, vintage pieces and bakelite!! Here's some of the pieces, see the rest of the moonrox designs or shop etsy. Check out moonrox blog for a One of a Kind coupon and proceed to booth Z-15.

Holiday Parols

2009-12-01T10:24:00.002-05:00

via

Was over at beautiful inspiring blog musings & tidbits and fell in love with parols; Christmas lanterns in the Phillippines.

via

I'm drawn to the more neutral coloured images I found. For the ambitious crafters out there, I found this tutorial. I'm going to visit some nearby Filipino shops and see if I can bring a parol home. I'll let you know.

Just a minute... in November

2009-11-29T22:31:00.002-05:00

Love this idea from Jenaveve at August Street. I discovered many cool blogs from this meme last month. So as a new blogger, here's my first go at Just a minute...

Listening... can't get enough of the song Chupee by Cocoon - it's just so cute. Also, great walking or subway reading music, Do Make Say Think's moody instrumental album Other Truths.

Praising... all the amazing bloggers out there. I love seeing what you all come up with everyday and catching up over the weekend. You're all inspiring me to be more creative. yay!

Watching... old Katharine Hepburn movies. Women of the Year was an interesting view of a workaholic woman in 1942. In Suddenly, Last Summer, you always know if something's supposed to be mysterious by the music. I can't believe how almost all of the movie(maybe the whole thing) had music telling the story under the dialogue, which became comical. Wow, guess I never realized Liz Taylor's beauty.

via

Reading...  the final pages of Duma Key by Stephen King. After reading Misery a very long time ago, I stayed away from SK because he was far too gory. I'm pleasantly surprised by this novel: scary, but not very gory, and wonderfully written.

Cooking...  the most amazing beet dip and lots of chocolate chip oatmeal peanut butter cookies.

Writing...  pen hasn't yet reached paper, but toying with ideas for a play for a local theatre festival.

Sewing...  will start soon. I've been thrifting and need to customize 'new to me' clothing.

Loving... my boy and my jaggermuffin(dog). The weather which seems warmer than we had in the summer.

That was fun. You should join in.

Charlotte Gray

2009-11-24T12:38:00.001-05:00

via

As a rule, I don't watch war movies. Tivo keeps track of all upcoming Cate Blanchett films for me and along came Charlotte Gray. My rule may have to be changed to only war movies with female central characters.

Photos by Jaap Buitendijk via

I must admit it was not the best film, but I was mesmerized by the story of a secret operative woman. She parachutes into France to help defeat the Nazis.

via

It's also hard to resist the red hats, clothing and Cate madly riding a bicycle in the forties. I have a true love for antique bikes.

Weekend with the folks

2009-11-16T20:46:00.000-05:00

Hope everyone had a great weekend! Hubby and I went to visit my parents and attend a baby shower/engagement party of a dear dear friend. I also got to see baby V., yay!!! My parents have recently moved into a great apartment so I took a few shots (my camera was supposed to arrive Friday, but they must be trying to deliver it to the wrong house, I'm getting them to deliver it to my work). The first pic is the thrift finds I found along our road trip, followed by a picture of one of my favourite pictures ever! The 3 silhouettes are my mom, my sister and I at the ocean many moons ago.

Paris on the brain

2009-11-11T20:38:00.002-05:00

Apparently subconsciously I seem to have decided I'm going to Paris. I can't stop thinking about anything I see or hear about Paris. This video is so fun and I love the idea of going on vacation to create a project. Can't wait for my digital camera to arrive. Many lovely Paris posts at little brown pen.

Calendar etsy or little brown pen shop

Kisses from Paris

2009-11-10T21:21:00.006-05:00

Paris is campaigning for hipper tourists. I heard about this today via CBC radio's As It Happens. I love CBC!! I've already been dreaming of a European vacation after perusing blogs from across the Atlantic...

This film, beautifully directed by Ivan Attal, is a loosely-based modern version of Robert Doisneau's The Kiss. I had this up in my room as a teenager (still love this photo).

Lonely flowers

2009-11-10T12:47:00.007-05:00

Well it's taken me a week to post again since I've been caught up in blogland. I can't believe I wasn't aware of this amazing world of inspiration. Finally I want to create!!! I've been so inspired that I spent much of the weekend redesigning my home; after checking out blogs I finally have ideas of what to do with all my stuff.

I've been loving all the Roidweek posts and created my own using my substitute polaroid: iphone app shakeitphoto ... so cool!!!

Although it's felt like summer the past few days here: it's fall. The leaves are gone, but the flowers keep survivin'.

Camera ordered, picked bedroom paint colour

2009-11-03T20:09:00.000-05:00

I picked out my camera and am super excited that it has pin-hole camera and pop-art functions (I realize these are probably easy to do with photoshop, but I'm used to a film SLR). After ordering it I noticed that it doesn't have a viewfinder!!! How this is possible I do not know but it's gonna be new for me anyway and I'll just have to learn to use the LCD screen.

I spotted these amazing pictures at the style files:

These are the wonderful stylings of Twig Hutchinson. I have decided to paint my bedroom on my road to the perfect home, or at least my super cozy home. The colour will be that of the bottom left hand picture; I'm obsessed with how this colour is either blue, green or grey depending on the lighting. I found my matching paint chip; just have to get up the energy for the priming as the previous owners used oil paint throughout the house: why? why? why?

The following image from Twig's portfolio will be the colour palette for my home, it's gonna go great with all our retro stuff (lots of wood and some seventies orange accents). I would like to introduce some of the yellow accents Twig uses. I love the mood her stylings create: clean, modern, cozy, classic?!?

Here goes...

2009-11-02T16:20:00.001-05:00

I love reading blogs and decided it’s time for my own. First things first, it’s about time I got my own digital camera, other than my iphone, and it just so happens I have enough airmiles to order one, yayy free camera!!!

pick camera
start diying — turning my house into the perfect home
jewelry making — finally using my beautiful beads
getting my etsy shop going
less tv, more blogging, more searching for inspiration

I’m excited!! ’Till I get my camera, I’m going to borrow from the world wide web. This video sums up how inspired I feel checking out the supercool blogs people are writing.

Found it at: ROSEMARY MAC CABE, love her blog!!